Nation: Playing Politics with Gas

Pressured by Jerry Brown, Carter sounds optimistic—and confused

The two men have very little respect for each other. One is President, and the other wants his job. Jimmy Carter regards Governor Jerry Brown of California as a sloganeering opportunist, while Brown considers Carter incompetent. Nonetheless, Brown telephoned Carter at the White House last week to ask for an audience, and Carter, in the straight-faced account of Press Secretary Jody Powell, "was happy to provide it." What brought them together two days later was the gasoline shortage, which has been felt nowhere in the country so sharply as in California.

For yet another week, gas stations almost everywhere kept short hours, closed on the weekend or limited sales to a few gallons because supplies were short, by 5% to 20% of 1978 levels. In most states it was enough of a pinch to make gasoline a major topic of concern, but not enough to force Americans to change lifestyles. In California, however, long lines of cars formed at every open pump, as angry and panicky motorists tried to buy every drop available.

White House aides reacted to Brown's call as though they were receiving a visit from Count Dracula. In an effort to blunt any political benefits to Brown, they quickly got on the phones and invited to the meeting all 45 members of the California congressional delegation plus the speaker of the state assembly and Los Angeles Mayor Thomas Bradley.

Unintimidated, Brown flew east and told Washington reporters: "I'm not here to point any fingers. I'm here to try to get some answers." At 10 a.m. Wednesday, the Californian pointedly walked up the White House driveway, met with Carter for ten minutes in the Oval Office and then went with the President to the Cabinet Room for an amiable hour-long chat with the other Californians.

As soon as the meeting ended, Brown seized the initiative. He told reporters that he had warned Carter that the scarcity of gas in California might cause an economic disaster, which could spread quickly and tip the nation into recession. The Governor suggested that Carter had "responded" by promising that California would get more gasoline. Said Brown: "May will be the worst; in June things will improve." Brown could not resist one extra dig at Carter: "Many people actually thought that the President was punishing California because of me. I don't believe that." Then he turned over the microphone to Republican Senator S.I. Hayakawa, who promptly made the Marie Antoinette remark of the year: "Let gas go to $1.50, even $2 per gal. A lot of poor don't need gas because they are not working." Hearing that, Brown gingerly edged away from the microphone and headed for home.

Carter moved quickly to recover. He made an appearance of his own before reporters to proclaim that he had begun working to ease California's gas shortage long before Brown's visit. On May 1, Carter said, the Department of Energy changed the gasoline allocation formula so that California will get more gas. Previously allocations were based on 1978 supplies; the formula will now take into consideration population growth.